As a favourite of Elizabeth I, Leicester was expected to entertain the queen lavishly. The revels that he staged when she visited him at Kenilworth Castle in July 1575 were of a scale and splendor that had never been seen before.

Mary Anne Clarke was the notorious mistress of Frederick, Duke of York, son of the king and commander-in-chief of the military. During a political scandal in 1809, the public pored over details of her opulent lifestyle.

King George IV after Sir Thomas Lawrence oil on canvas, (1815) NPG 2503

George IV is remembered as one of the most debouched and gluttonous of British royals. Prior to his accession to the throne, his overweight appearance led to him being commonly mocked as the 'prince of wholes'.

An unmistakable figure with red hair, turquoise eyes and flamboyant Elizabethan-style dress. hostess and artistic patron Lady Ottoline Morrell appears again and again in the books and visual arts of the early twentieth century.

Paul McCartney rose to fame with the Beatles in the 1960s. The band were well known for their love of partying and Sir Paul continues to make headlines over four decades later for attending and hosting glamorous events.